hello there, welcome to nhk "newsline." it's friday december 9, 10:00 a.m. in tokyo. lawmakers are expected to vote on a motion friday afternoon to impeach president park. the motion was submitted by three opposition parties and fights to influence the fraud scandal. it says park disrupted the market system by forcing companies to donate funds to park and others. the ones who are either opposed to or have kept political distance from park.

12:01 am

the opposition needs 28 of them to support the motion to pass. the leader of the main opposition parties joined lawmakers and supporters in an overnight sit in at the entrance to parliament. they expressed determination to ensure the motion passes. people demanding park's impeachment or resignation also held a rally nearby. if impeached, prime minister park will retire from her duties. >> radiation levels have remained high since the 2011 nuclear disaster. the plant's operator is currently paying for the cleanup. but it won't ask tepco

12:02 am

furnish any money. the cleanup is part of the government's effort to eventually rebuild so people will be able to live there again. the work is planned to start after next april. it's time for the latest in business headlines, people at the ecb are making changes to policy. what's the new plan here? >> the ecb was planning to end its current easing program next year, but they have decided that they will extend it throughout the year, but with some adjustments from spring they are going to start tapering. some market participants view this as a step forward toward normalization of the bank's policy. the president of the ecb said that they will extend the easing period through december 2017. but the ecb will scale back its monetary purchases from $87 billion to $60 billion.

12:03 am

he said deflation worries have nearly all receded. national elections are scheduled for next year in euro zone companies including france and germany. the outcomes may trigger financial instability. people are also concerned about a possible political vacuum in the aftermath of a national referendum in italy. the president said the ecb would review easing again depending on the economy. the nikkei trading .74% right now. financials are gaining and a weaker yen is helping export related stocks. let's check on the euro. the common currency spiked in

12:04 am

the initial reaction to the ecb's policy decision to the upper 1.08 level. it has since dropped more than 2%. right now trading sat the lower end of 106. the ecb decision also led bond yields higher in the u.s. let's turn to other markets open across the asia pacific. we are seeing australia gaining, that's up by .3%, but we're seeing the kospi down .25%. we'll see the markets open in just under a halfen hour. executives at two japanese power companies say they're going to start importing shale gas at the end of this month. a joint venture between the tokyo electric power company

12:05 am

and-oez the fund plans to import up to 700,000 tons by january 2018. the gasoline will be used for a thermal power plant. import prices of natural gas usually are linked to crude oil but they fluctuate based on their own supply and demand. other trading houses are planning to import shale gas. she'll she'll -- shale is a type of gas that can be -- india's cash based society are continuing to struggle one month after large bank notes were taken out of circulation. the government suddenly announced early last month it would abolish 500 and 1,000 rupee notes the next day.

12:06 am

they said it was an attempt to fight corruption and counterfeiting. its new replacement amounts to only four trillion. officials are acknowledging the short fall. the government is holding seminars to promote use of electronic money and other cashless transactions. >> it's a new system and it's very convenient. i started using it. >> they say a cashless system is convenient, but i found it difficult. i'm not sure if i can use it very well. i want cash. >> the government wants to get the situation under control by december 30th, even so, the central bank has lowered it's growth forecast for this fiscal year by half a percentage point as the cash has been dampening

12:07 am

consumpti consumption. the leaders of japan and russia will meet for talks next week. the discussions in japan will focus on territorial issues, but they'll also look at ways to strengthen economic ties. >> they want japanese companies to help. nhk world finds out more. >> reporter: the delegation of russian industry and trade ministries made a rare visit to japan last month. they spent time at the machine trade fair. but he wasn't shopping for lint machines. >> he invited japanese plans to build plants in russia. he wants to join incentives for

12:08 am

foreign investors including tax breaks. >> we want to add a new page to ties between russia and japan through the the field of machine robots technology. >> reporter: this machinery maker is one of the companies he talked to at the fair. it's started exporting manufacturing business to russia more than ten years ago. the automated machines allow factories to reduce manpower and equipment and boost productivity. in high level diplomacy may be the reason. >> translator: we think if leaders of the countries are moving up to cooperate, russian clients would be in a mood to by more japanese machines easily. it would allow us a lot more business opportunities. >> reporter: russia accounts for 1.2% of the industry's trade.

12:09 am

business leaders blame customers. as japanese trading company hokkaido corporation is helping to solve those problems. it's launched an agricultural project in yakuk in russia's far east. taking part in the project, is the leader of this company. this is his first time doing business in russia. and hokkaido corporation is leading the way. here's one example, as customs document. it is hundreds of parts and materials down to small quotes. the trading company has to clear customs in one day. it normally would have taken a month. >> translator: our job is to make things, it's impossible for

12:10 am

us to manage all the documents required. but hokkaido corporation has the expertise for that. together, we make a good team. and we're able to deliver results. >> he focuses on growing tomatoes, why the trading company looks after marketing. they are now working on expanding the green house project. >> translator: the russian far east isn't far from japan. and yet it's a market that has been left untouched for a long time. it's time we tapped the business opportunities there. >> many companies are looking for business opportunities in russia. but putting plans into action may depend on what the leaders can agree to in next week's japan-russia summit. >> and that is the latest in business for this hour, i'll leave you with a check on markets.

12:11 am

it's nobel week, the time when this year's prize winners gather in stockholm to receive their awards. a writer has been nominated

12:12 am

writi writing her oral history of the chernobyl disaster. here's the report. >> reporter: since the nuclear disaster five years ago, many former residents are still living as evacuees. she reaches people living in temporary housing and listens to their stories. >> translator: do you remember when the accident took place? >> translator: i couldn't forget it if i tried. >> reporter: her books are written collages of testimonies from people. it was published in 1997 is representative of her work. it's a collection of statements from the victims of the chernobyl nuclear disaster 30 years ago. she spent more than 10 years interviewing over 300 people,

12:13 am

sometimes on camera. she then wrote about their deep shock and continual sadness. >> in the last few days, whenever i lifted my husband's body, his skin would peel off, and stick to my hand. >> last year, she won the nobel prize in literature, with what the committee called prolific writing called a moment of suffering and courage in time. >> i try to is hear what a person sees and hears. i think it's important to remember their lives. >> she came to japan to hear

12:14 am

what people in fukushima prefecture had to say. she met with this man. before the earthquake, he had about 50 cows. he was living with several members of his family, spanning four generations. she drove him to his former home. it's still empty. after the accident, all of his cows had to be put down or let go. unable to continue dairy farming due to radiation, he decided to demolish the cow shed. his family is now scattered. >> translator: wasn't it difficult to leave home? >> translator: yes, it was. we can't live the way we did before the accident. because of the radiation.

12:15 am

>> she was also told a story of a dairy farmer who committed suicide. a girlfriend of the farmer took her to the place where he died. >> translator: he left a note saying i wish there had been no nuclear power plants here. >> no one completely understands the horror of nuclear power. literature should communicate it and so should philosophers. it's not a job for politicians alone. in other words, we need to look at what happens in chernobyl an to form new knowledge. i saw the future, not the past and we need to work on that future.

12:16 am

>> reporter: the future depends on never letting the voices of the ordinary people go unheard. that's the message from the nobel laureate. people claiming they suffer from noise around an air base near tokyo have suffered a disappointment. a high court had ordered the government to suspend self-defense force flights at night. but now the supreme court has thrown out that ruling. the japan maritime self-defense force and the u.s. navy share the air base. about 7,000 people who live nearby saw damages from the noise. they also asked for an end to flights at night. supreme court judges recognize the plaintiffs have suffered continual sleep disruption and mental distress. but they said that self-defense force flights serve the public and they point out that the

12:17 am

government has tried to limit them and has paid for homes to be insulated. they also upheld a ruling that japan doesn't have the authority to suspend the japanese self-defense flights. the government says it will do what it can. >> it's obvious those who use the base should do their utmost to minimize the impact of noisz on people who live nearby. so we'll ask the u.s. to address the issue and to proceed with plans to transfer carrier based aircraft to another base. >> the plaintiffs are not happy. >> translator: this is a great shame, it shows that the judiciary is not able to check the executive. an american military pilot who crashed his jet and rescued

12:18 am

by the self-defense forces is dead. the marine corps made the now in a statement. the marine pilot made an emergency escape thursday evening when his fighter jet went down about 100 kilometers off the coast. he was in the middle of a training flight with another aircraft. a self-defense force crew found him and he was transported to his u.s. base. the marines say the cause of the crash is not yet known. the paris agreement on climate change came into force in november, but u.s. president-elect donald trump has created a stir by hinting he wants to withdraw from the accord. nhk world's senior commentator reports. >> reporter: the former chief of the united nations frame work conference on climate change. when the leadership prize for pushing forward the paris agreement. the costa rica diplomat spoke to nhk. >> the world has come together

12:19 am

for this multilateral plan. the decarbonization of the economy has been shown as something that's beneficial and that is not going to be stopped. >> under the paris agreement, all governments carry an obligation to hold global warming to less than 2 cent grade levels. the possible of the u.s. pulling out of the a accord is not good news. she says it will be detrimental not for the agreement, but for the united states. >> it would take the united states out of a global evolution of the global economy. and parse the united states into nonmovement when the rest of the economy is moving forward. >> reporter: it was considered a

12:20 am

break through when the u.s. and china ratified agreements at the world's largest emitters of green house gases. but it was china that held the key. >> china took the leadership on climate change many years ago. in fact i would say four to five years ago. and they already took the leadership on climate change and they were incredibly generous and patient to wait for president obama to get into his second term. but if the united states now chooses not to execute that partnership, that doesn't mean that china backs away. china will continue to move forward. this is a huge opportunity for china. china is so committed to this. because they know that it's good for them. and they're going to take more leadership. >> reporter: china is not the only one finding opportunities in climate change. companies in the u.s. are also embracing the climate deal.

12:21 am

>> there was the participation of the private sector that was very, very adamant, once they understood why this is in their own interests. there was the support of labor unions who understand that on a dead planet there are no jobs and thought in order to increase jobs, we need to move to new technologies that actually increase opportunities for employment, not decrease. >> she says there is growing commitment no matter what the new u.s. administration chooses to do. she hopes the business tycoon turned president-elect also sees that it makes business sense to stay on board. >> nhk has learned that months before a busy intersection in southwestern japan caved in, experts had issued a warning. the road near a major train station collapsed early last month. authorities blamed work on a subway system. the city had held a meeting of

12:22 am

experts in august, they discussed a design change that involved digging the subway tunnel deeper than initially planned. this was to avoid a soft layer of soil containing ground water. the minutes of the meeting shows one expert says there was still a risk of a cave in even if the design changed. another expert said the ground could sin if ground water remains. crews were able to reopen the road after one week, and residents remain concerned. >> such a thing should never happen again. thorough investigation is necessary to prevent similar incidents. >> the central government is expected to look into the changes to the construction plan. people in toek know -- tokyo

12:23 am

are going to work and school under clear skies. >> we'll start off in japan, or in tokyo, we are looking at some pretty beautiful weather out there today. especially this time of year, temperatures are in the high teens, and sunny conditions. maybe some thunderstorms out there today, one of the main reasons for is that interaction with some warmer temperatures in the tokyo area, almost autumn like temperatures, but we have much colder air diving in behind us, so that will be firing up the thunderstorms on the japan side. the mountains will be blocking a lot of that off. now they have still got heavy snow back to the north there, some areas 30, maybe 40 centimeters is possible there in your forecast.

12:24 am

as i mentioned along the pacific coast, tokyo, high 17. the snow is going to remain out of play, as far as any precipitation, but temperatures will reflect that cold front moving by. from 17 all the way down to just 11 for the high by sunday and overnight lows well into the single digits. now take a look back here in the bigger picture, high pressure dominating much of eastern and central china. this is creating several problems out here. this is one. we're seeing haze and smog

12:25 am

coming out of that satellite area. that bright white spot. this has been creating all sorts of traffic hazards as well. actually visibility on the highways here reduced the less than 30 meters and it's shut down some major highwaysaround chongqing, more than 100 travel delays. authorities were definitely playing it safe and shutting that down, trying to reduce the risk of accidents out there. also at the airport, there was numerous cancellations and of course that reduced air quality under that area of haze. taking a look at the temperatures, we are going to be looking at a high of about 17, shanghai 14. if we look down towards the south bay, partly cloudy skies, just to the west of bangkok, we do have a storm out here, this is our cyclonic storm moving off toward the northwest, it's not going to become a severe cyclonic storm. it's gradually weakening as it

12:26 am

nears the coastline of india. hoping it gets weak enough to cause some major problems. as we take a look at europe, high pressure dominating central europe today, absolutely beautiful if you're out here. back towards the north, we have a front moving through, it's going to bring some pretty gusty winds, but overall, partly cloudy conditions there for you, a high of 12 on friday. here's your extended outlook.

12:27 am

and that is all for this edition of nhk newsline. thank you for joining us.

12:28 am

12:29 am

12:30 am

ernie stevens: on this edition of "native report," we'll meet dr. arne vainio and head into our studio to watch as he performs a science experiment. rita aspinwall: we visit the american indian cancer foundation and learn about its mission. ernie stevens: and we meet the honorable diane humetewa, united states district court judges for the district of arizona. rita aspinwall: we also hear from our elders on this edition of "native report." narrator: production of "native report" is made possible by grants from the shakopee mdewakanton sioux community, the blandin foundation, and the duluth superior area community foundation. [music playing]